“Teacher, this woman was caught in the very act of committing adultery, and in the Law of Moses, the provision says that she is to be stoned to death. What do you have say about it?” On this Fifth Sunday of Lent, as we approach the Holy Week which is the climax of our Lenten journey, the Scripture readings invite us to continue meditating upon God’s compassionate love for us which has been the focus of our readings for the last two Sundays. And whereas God’s compassionate love for creation is what we celebrate each time we gather as a community to render praise and worship to God, in the events that we commemorate during the Holy Week, we are enabled to see, feel and touch God’s love in action. For as St. Paul reminds us, it is in the passion and death of Jesus’ Christ that God’s love for us is demonstrated in a more tangible manner (cf. Romans 5:8). The events commemorated during the Holy Week are rightly considered the grand finale of Jesus’ saving mission. However, Jesus’ entire life and ministry was his passion and death. From the moment he was born in a manger in Bethlehem to the moment he gave up his spirit as he hung on the wood of the cross, Jesus never got tired of demonstrating his love for his brothers and sisters. The account of a woman caught in adultery of which we have read in today’s Gospel passage was such an occasion. 
We can all imagine the fear that was in the woman’s face as she was being arraigned before Jesus. She could already feel the stones hitting her body and tearing into her flesh. She was aware that her case had already been decided. She was guilty as charged. The sentencing had been done. The crowd that had been slowly forming was just waiting for Jesus to rubberstamp the guilty verdict. It was a sight that must have moved Jesus to pity. But it was also sight that seemingly placed Jesus between a rock and a hard place. The scribes and the Pharisees had longed for an opportunity to entrap Jesus by turning his words and/or actions against him. They could not have wished for a better incident than the one that was before them. The scribes and the Pharisees knew and were aware of the soft spot Jesus had for “sinners,” and how Jesus had always found a way to interpret the law that favored such individuals. On this day, not only had they brought a woman caught in the very act of sinning, but they had also invoked the authority of the great Moses to seek the maximum penalty for her crime: death. They had come not only to request for Jesus’ opinion, but also to ask him to join them in carrying out the sentence. And there was the trap. As a rabbi and teacher of the law, Jesus needed to be at the front line in enforcing the law. However, if he was to join them, would he not be doing the exact opposite of what he had always said and done? On the other hand, if he were to refuse, would he not be challenging the authority of Moses? Which member of the Jewish community, let alone a rabbi, would dare challenge Moses?
“Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her, and I will gladly join you.” Jesus didn’t disagree with the religious leaders on the fact that the woman had sinned by engaging in an adulterous act. He didn’t disagree with them on the fact that what the woman did was wrong. However, unlike them, he was not going to condemn her to death. Although Jesus was aware of what the law said about such incidences, he was not going to pronounce any condemnatory judgment against the woman. The woman was somebody’s daughter and sister. What she did notwithstanding, she was still God’s child. If God were to be asked, God would give her an opportunity to reform her life since God takes no delight in the death of a sinner (cf. Ezekiel 18:23). Moreover, by condemning the woman to death, the scribes and the Pharisees had set themselves apart as being without sin. Jesus disagreed with them on this attempt of theirs to assume the place of God. In condemning the woman, all that the scribes and Pharisees did was to alienate her from the community rather than call her to true repentance. Jesus disagreed with them on their self-righteous stance that only served to condemn and alienate rather than forgive and reconcile. 
“Has none condemned thee? Neither do I condemn thee; go and sin no more.”  Jesus looked at the woman and saw her for who she was: a daughter of God who had strayed but who nonetheless was in need of reconciliation. He saw her as a lost child of God who also needed to be brought home to God. He didn’t approve of her actions (go and sin no more), but saw her as worthy of redemption. Jesus saw her as an individual worthy of a second chance, just as God has done with the entire created universe. This is what Jesus gave her. By telling her to go and sin no more, Jesus had given her a second shot at being fully alive. Although Jesus was yet to die for the sins of the world, he was already gifting men and women with new lives. He was already saving them from eternal death. The Lenten period is given us as a time to seek reconciliation with God as well as with our brothers and sisters. The Lenten season is given us as a time to come home to the Lord. May we find encouragement in the knowledge that the Lord our God is loving and forgiving, full of mercy and compassion.